Ephemeral
by RosieBrie
Summary: While grocery shopping with his sensei one day, Genos runs into Metal Bat and Zenko, triggering a chain of memories of the life he'll never get back. (Short One-Shot) Cover art was created by my magnificent friend @abbythegatekeeper on tumblr!


_**A/N: ... Guess who joined the One Punch Man fandom?**_

* * *

"Demon Cyborg! Sign my purse!"

"Yeah, mine too!"

"You're so cool!"

Genos sighed, complying with the hyperactive fan's requests. As he signed one of the women's bags he scanned the area, searching for where his sensei could have gotten off to. He was four aisles over, making his way towards a discount on frozen foods. Genos' core hummed in irritation. As a Class S hero, it was expected to be recognized and approached by fans on personal outings, but it did not make them any less inconvenient.

As the last woman asked for a hug (which he politely declined) they suddenly seemed to be drawn to another source of gawking. Genos felt a bit relieved, and once again prepared to locate his sensei. He stopped however, hearing one of the young ladies speak.

"Metal Bat!"

"Oh is this your little sister?"

"She's so cute!"

Genos felt a prick of curiosity, glancing back towards the commotion. Two figures were standing in the toy aisle, surrounded by the cooing females. The pompadour-styled teenager Metal Bat looked more than a tad annoyed as he grasped his sister's hand and rolled his eyes at the ladies. Genos caught his eye and noticed the fellow S class hero give a barely discernible nod of recognition. The cyborg's own expression remained neutral as he watched the little girl, Zenko, yank on her brother's sleeve impatiently, a small scowl resting on her face. She was not impressed with the fan's display either.

Metal Bat obediently gave her all of his attention, flat out ignoring the three young women now. Genos could tell she had the normally tough hero wrapped around her little finger. Something stirred within him as he witnessed this devotion. Zenko tapped her foot, pulling her brother away and pointing at something on the shelf, talking rapidly about it. Excitement glistened in her eyes. Metal Bat seemed to be considering something, and eventually nodded.

The little girl beamed, hugging her older brother around the waist. The corner of Metal Bat's lip twitched before he glared at the three "awwing" women to leave. Genos watched them walk away, heading to check-out with a new stuffed animal in hand. He stood stiffly, feeling a dull, familiar ache.

* * *

"Big brother! Put me down!" The little girl with the golden twin-tails squeaked with bubbly laughter as her elder sibling scooped her upside down from his place on the couch.

"Nope, you were going to try tickling me weren't you? This is the price you pay." He replied, lying on his back, lifting the hyperactive child above his head. She spread her arms wide, showing off a multi-gaped smile as he made silly sound effects, like that of a plane's engine. Eventually, the teen's arms began to tire slightly, and he brought her down to rest on his chest.

"It's about lunch time isn't it? What do you want for lunch, Kaede?" The child tilted her head, scrunching her nose in concentration.

"Dunno, but Mama should make it. You don't cook very well!" She replied, bonking him on the forehead with a tiny fist. The elder blonde just smirked and sighed.

"Uh oh, now you've hurt my feelings. Guess you better apologize." He chuckled as she jumped off of him, darting around a sharp corner and out of sight. Kaede's giggles of delight echoed distantly off of the hall walls as the fifteen year old moved to follow her, playing along in her game.

Kaede moved swiftly up the stairs, throwing open the door of a closet and crouching low to hide in a corner. She pressed a hand to her mouth, trying to muffle her giggles. Outside in the hall, her brother grinned in amusement, sneaking silently as he heard a sliver of her tiny chuckles.

"Hm, where could Kaede have gone? She's so small, she could be anywhere!" He stated, faking obliviousness. Shuffling with innocence, he drew closer to the door. Kaede smirked, knowing he was messing with her. Suddenly light flooded her hiding spot as the door was thrown open. In one swoop, the elder had gathered her up in his arms, smiling wryly.

"Genos! Haha!" She pounded her little fists against his chest. Genos shifted her in his arms, turning her upside down again.

"Yes Kaede?" He whistled inoffensively as she squirmed.

"Okay, okay fine! Your cooking isn't _that_ bad! I just like Mom's more!" She eventually relented.

He hummed, raising an eyebrow. "Well I'll have to work on that then." He replied vaguely just as the front door opened downstairs, causing the two siblings to jump in surprise.

"Genos, Kaede, what are you doing?" Their mother asked, brushing some of her own blonde hair out of her face as she set her bag down on the side table. She crossed her arms and observed their current predicament with gentle mirth. Genos set the child down, where she settled on the floor.

"We were deciding what to eat for lunch." Genos grabbed Kaede's hand, leading her towards the kitchen to find something and avoid their mother's gaze. The older woman simply clicked her tongue and followed him.

"Odd ritual. Did you come to a consensus?"

Kaede pulled her hand away from Genos' and clenched her fist in determination. "Yeah, can you make us something?" Genos rolled his eyes at his sister's bluntness. She shook her head, pursing her lips as she came forward and gathered them in her arms.

"Anything for my two favorite children!" She nuzzled them both and Genos inched away from the show of affection.

"We're your only children." He reminded her pointedly. She flicked his nose in exasperation.

"I'm aware. Well, come on and tell me what you want. Your dad will be in a few hours so he'll probably have already eaten. Genos, you could've made something for the both of you to share."

"It's not my fault she refused my offer." He sent Kaede a slightly annoyed expression, which she skillfully avoided with wide, guiltless eyes. He exhaled, allowing a smile to slip into place as she grabbed his hand and they headed to the bathroom to wash up before lunch.

* * *

He didn't know how long he'd stood there in the middle of the aisle, thinking about that last day. Before the mad cyborg had come, spreading terror and flames and deracinating everything he'd ever known or cared for. He remembered the way his sister would look at him, admiration shining in her eyes, so similar a color to how his own had been. He remembered feeling the teenage awkwardness of his mother's hugs, even though he knew he couldn't replace them for anything. He remembered the small, yet meaningful promise of how he would improve his cooking abilities in order to satisfy them when no one else was around to provide. It was a good exercise of independence wasn't it? He'd kept that promise after Dr. Kuseno had taken him in. He'd remembered it and held onto it.

He hadn't seen her again, after their mother had tucked her in that night. They'd gone to bed and that was it. The next time he awoke was filled with chaos, broken glass and rubble, and excruciating heat. Then there was nothing anymore.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and realized there was oil, gathering visibly in the corners of his eyes. Genos turned, seeing his sensei looking at him with an unreadable expression.

"Genos, let's go home."

When they checked out and paid for everything he could've sworn his sensei noticed the discreet glance he'd sent Metal Bat and Zenko in the opposite line.

* * *

 _ **A/N: Short little take on Genos' fam before death and destruction and all that jazz. I'd like to think he had a cute kid-sister too.**_

 _ **Irrelevant, but I'm using the name "Kasai" in my head for his mother (Okay it's not actually a conventional name). "Kasai" is a wild and uncontrollable fire. Hehe yeah I'm so original. "Kaede" means maple-leaf and I just thought it sounded cute.**_

 _ **\- With Love, from Rosemary ;)**_


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